1965 Dodge Coronet 500

January 2017 Mopar of the Month

Tom writes from Connecticut: My Coronet 500 was a "shot-in-the-dark" from when I first saw the Dodge 'til I became the Mopar's third owner in January, 2012.

Jeff Doster, owner of Autos Unlimited* refurbished the Dodge six years before I came along. Jeff repainted the Dodge in the original "pale gold" two-stage lacquer. Jeff also pulled the original 361 engine and replaced it with a hypo 383 from a 1969 Dodge Superbee. It has .30 over flat top pistons,452 heads, the 335 hp camshaft, Edelbrock aluminum intake, a Holley 750, and a mild convertor in the rebuilt 727 transmission. I've added the TTI ceramic-coated headers with Doug's electric cutouts, x-pipe and 2.5" exhaust. *(Autos Unlimited, 5207 Glen Echo Road, Glenville PA 17329. 717.232.59051.)

The black interior has a touch of silver around the seat inserts with new foam.

To top it off, I've added the Torq Thrust D mags with 215/75x15s in front and 255/70x15s in back.

I was lucky, as Jeff told me the Dodge was not for sale; but after looking several months elsewhere, I called him back and we finally struck a deal. As far as I know, there are only two other 500s registered in the state of Connecticut.